Lace-curtain stretcher.



No. 655,038. Patented July 3|, I900. J. c. WHIPPLE.

LACE CURTAIN STBETCHER.

(Applicafiion filedNov. 20, 1899.)

(No Model.)

W masses.

UNITED STATES PAT ENT OFFICE;

JAMES C. WHIPPLE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

LACE-CU RTAIHN ,SJTRUETCH ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 655,038 dated July 31, 1900.

Application filed November 20,1899. :Eerlal No- 737 608. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern: I

Be it known that 1, JAMES C. WHIPPLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lace-Curtain Stretohers, of which the followin g, Whentaken in connection with the drawings accompanying and form= ing a part hereof, is a full and complete description sufficient to enable those skilled in the art to which it pertains to understand, make, and use the same.

This invention relates tothat class or kind of lace-curtain stretchers which are designed to be set up for use and folded or taken down when not in use.

One object of this invention is to obtain a lace-curtain stretcher which shall be neat in appearance, not liable to get out of order, and of moderate cost to make.

A further object of the invention is to obtain a lacecurtain stretcher of the kind named whereinmo hinge or pivoted plates will be required to be used.

In lace-curtain stretohers of the class or kind named side rails composed, respectively, of two bars joined together at adjacent ends are secured or attached at the opposite ends to end rails, thereby obtaining a rectangular frame, such frame being'o'rdinarily made adjustable by pivotal connections at the meeting ends of, the -side and end rails made through slots in one of the meeting rails. In order to construct the side'rails of light material and small area in cross-section, it is necessary to provide specially constructed meeting attachments for joining the bars together Which'compose such side rails at the adjacent ends thereof. a cross-bar and means for attaching it near its ends to the side rails at or adjacent to the joined bars constituting such side rails; and this invention comprises a mechanism for securing together adjacent endsof the bars forming a side rail'whereof the bars are not hinged together; such side rail forming one or both, as preferred, of the side rails in the curtain-stretcher embodying this invention, and mechanism for securing the end of the cross-bar to such connecting mechanism and to the adjacent ends of the bars forming such side rail or rails.

It is also necessary to provide curtain-stretcher; Fig. 3, a verticalsectional 'vi'ewof'one of the side rails on line 3 3 of Fig. 1, viewed in the direction indicated by the arrows; Figs, an elevation on line 4 4 of Fig. 1, viewed-in the direction indicated by the arrows; Fig. 5, a bottom plan view of a modification of the connecting mechanism illustrated in bottom plan viewin Fig. 2; Fig. 6, an elevation of a modification of the conneeting mechanism illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5, both inclusive; and Fig. 7 is a bottom plan view of the mechanism illustrated in Fig. 6.

A reference letter-applied to designate a given part in one figure ofthe drawings is used to indicate such part throughout the several figures wherever the same appears.

A and Bare the side rails of the curtain stretcherembodying my invention, and C and D the end rails thereof. Side rail A com prises bar a, bar a, and connection E. Side rail B comprises bars Z) 17 and connection F. (See Fig. 2.) x

G is the connecting-bar, extending from side rail A to side rail B.

H H are bolts attaching the ends of the side and end rails together.

gig are washers on bolts G" G H H, respectively, and g g are butterfly-nuts on such bolts G G H H, respectively.

'GG are bolts extending throughholes in connecting-plate E and connection F, as hereinafter more fully shown and described.

Connecting mechanism E comprises the plate 6, turned up on its side edges, as at e e, and the bolts G G, extending through holes in the plate 6, with washers g g a nd'nuts g F,

and the bolt G extending through the connecting-bar G, plate Ea of theconnect-ion,

washer g on the last-named bolt,-and a but terfly-nut. In this connection'the ends of and G and washers gg, with the butterfly nuts g g on such bolts, respectively. The plate fis provided with the holes f f for bolts G G and slot f for a bolt to pass through, respectively.

bolts G G to pass through. This. plate f is secured to the bars b b of side rail B by the bolts G G, passing through the slots f f respectively, and through the bars 1) I), such bolts having thereon washers gg and but- The connecting-oar G is'attached nrmly 1n place to side rail A by bringing suchconnecting-bar up against the under side of plate 6 of connection E, as is well shown in Fig- 3 of the drawings, passing the bolt G upward through the connecting-bar and plate 6 and through between the ends of the barsa ain the slot or vertical groove a 0. on the ends of such bars, and'then placingthewasher g on such bolt, with thebutterfiy-nut g firmly set in place. The lines indicating such grooves 01 GB-are coincident in" Fig. 3 with the linesindicating the bolt G and in Figs. 2 -and 5 with the circles indicating the holes f f in.

plates f and 1, respectively, and in Fig. 7' with the: circle indicating similar vertical;

grooves in parts e e of plateE.

Theconnecting-bar G is secured in place to side rail B in substantially the same way--- nection; F, asis well shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, passing the bolt G upward through thecon-n-ecting-bar and plate f and through the'barsb-b, (between the endsof such bars,)- and then placing the washer g on such bolt, with the butterfly-nut g firmly set in, place.

The connection F is attached in place andto the bars b b by the bolts GG, (see Fig. 4,) j

passing through holes provided therefor in the respective bars I) b and through the plate f,j (One of such bolts passing through hole f and the other through slot f, as shown in Fig.

2,) and then setting the butterfly-nuts firmly inyplace on such bolts. The cross-bar G is attached to this connection by passing the bolt G through the connecting-bar, the plate f in the vertical grooves at the endsof the bars I) b, and washer g, and then securing the butterfly-nut on the bolt by turning it up against the washer. (See Fig. 4.) In the modification of connection E, which is illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7 and lettered E, the plate is cut on lines 6 e e e and e to obtain parts e and 6 Parts (2 e are secured to the respective bars a c by screws 6 12 The parts e e are placed between the connectiug-bar G and the bars a a, forming rail A, as is il'lustrated in Fig. 6 of the-drawings. Suchconnecting-bar G is removed in Fig. 7 to give a view of the several lines 6 e e e andeit, Inthis. modification the bolt G is used, as in theconstructions illustrated in the remaining figures of the drawings, to attach theconnecting-bar G in place to the rails, with partse e interposed between the connecting- ,tertly-nuts, g g in thesame relative position and in the same manner as is shown in Fig. 4 relative to connection F. In the use of this modification F, aswell' as in the use of the construction illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4, (connection F,) bars I) b can be folded parallel to each otherupon-taking out the bolts H H at the ends thereof, respectively, without taking bblts G G out of'such bars I) b, it being simply necessary to loosen the butterfly-nuts g fg onsuchb0l-ts.rr The connecting-bar 'G, may be-jdiscoh-njectjed from the connections E E F F, respectively,

by takin gout the bolt G, or itcanwhen'the device isin USQ'bQd'ISOQIlllGQbGdJfIOIDJ the connection on one side of the curtain-stretcher I embodying the; invention and allowed to re- 7 mainconnected-u-p, butloosened, as statedgon the other side of such curtainv-stretcherwhen the connection F or F": is employed;

In the modification lettered E." and Hills trated in Figs. 6 and. 7 the screws-a e; scourl' ingthe plate E (parts e c ',respecti-vely).to the 5 bars a a, are used as substitutes for'the bolts G G,with washers gg and nuts g g thereon,

illustrated in the remaining connections. of

; the. drawings, and hence such bolts, washers, I and nuts are omitted from this; construction. Having thus described my invention, what f I claim as new, and desire lqOlSGQlljlQ by'I-Jetters- Patent, is-

1. Ina lace-curtain stretcher, side rails .joined to end rails, a center barconnecting j the side rails of the stretcher,'sueh' side rails comprising, on one side of the frame, bars secured together bya connecting p1ate provided with a central openingand diagonallyextending openings near the ends thereof, bolts passing through such end'openings; and through the bars, respectively, nuts on the bolts and washers, anda bolt; passing through the centralopening in the plate, through the cross-barwhich is; secured to the connection on the other side rail and; between the ends of the side bars, andon the other side of; the frame-bars-joined together by a, connectingpl'ate provided with openings therethrough, bolts passing through such openings, and through the bars, an additional .bolt passing through such plate,,the barconnecting the 1 side rail with the side rail on the oppositeside of theframe, nd between theendsot the side bars, and washers and nuts on the several bolts; substantially as described.

2-. Inacurtain-stretcher, a side railcolnpris :ingbars joined together at adjacent ends and a cross-bar attached to the under side of the side rail and extending across the frame to the other side rail thereof, such bars joined :by a connection consisting of a plate having acentral opening and additional openings therethrough adjacent to the ends thereof,

the central opening being substantially cirseveral bolts, with the plate interposed becular and at least one of the remaining opentween the side rail and the cross-bar; sub- 10 ings being slot-shaped and extending rarllistantially as described. ally to the turning point of the rail ends, b0 ts 1 5 extending through the several openings in JAMES WHIPPLL' the plate and through the side bars, the bolt In presence 0fin the central opening also extending through CHARLES TURNER BROWN, the crossbar, with Washers and nuts on the O. C. PETERSON. 

